


Keep it Down

by littlervoice



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-21
Updated: 2015-02-21
Packaged: 2018-03-14 11:00:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3408095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlervoice/pseuds/littlervoice
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry's trying to write a paper but some idiot in the university library keeps distracting him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Keep it Down

Harry lets out a sigh and runs his hands through his hair. He is _so close_ to finishing this paper. He would have finished it ages ago if it weren't for the ignorant person somewhere in the university library who keeps laughing obnoxiously loud and distracting him. Now Harry doesn't consider himself an angry person by any means, but he can feel the irritation building inside him with each laugh because  _aren't libraries supposed to be quiet places?_

Another loud giggle echoes across the room causing Harry to lose his train of thought. Again. He looks up from the computer screen and scans the room, searching for the culprit, and his eyes land upon the back of a blond head sitting a few rows over from him. In a snap decision Harry stands up and makes his way over to the other boy, mentally preparing a reasonably polite way to ask him to _shut the hell up, please._

“Um, excuse me, hello,” Harry taps the blond on the shoulder.

“Yeah mate, what’s up?” The boy spins round in his seat, and Harry is met with the most beautiful pair of blue eyes he’s ever seen. So beautiful that Harry manages to lose all ability to string together a coherent sentence.

“I…laugh…you…” Harry trails off, receiving a confused eyebrow raise from Blue Eyes.

Blue Eyes smirks and answers, “Uh, ok?” and Harry can feel his cheeks beginning to burn red under the boy’s stare.

“Sorry it’s just, well, um, I'm trying to write a paper – I have been for the past 2 hours actually – and I'm so nearly done but it’s just I keep getting distracted by you. Your laugh, I mean!  So anyway, I was wondering if maybe you could perhaps keep it down a little bit?” Harry says, without so much of a breath. He looks up and this time the other boy has a bit of a bewildered look on his face.

 “You know what never mind, it’s fine I’ll manage. I don’t wanna be one of those people who tells others what they can and can’t do,” Harry decides to end this train wreck before it gets any worse.  “Sorry to have bothered you, I’ll just….” he says as he gestures vaguely over to where he was previously sitting.

As he turns to make his way back to his computer he’s stopped by the sound of the blond boy’s voice.

“Hey don’t worry man it’s fine,” he calls out, “it’s not the first time I've been told I'm a bit loud.” He winks and Harry’s stomach does a weird little flip. “In all seriousness though I'm sorry for annoying you, guess I kinda forgot I was in a public place, y’know?”

Harry nods even though no, he doesn't know someone can just forget where they are.

The two boys drift into an awkward silence, neither one knowing what to do next. Harry daren’t open his mouth – doesn't trust himself not to say something completely stupid like _“I think I might be in love with you even though we only just met and I don’t even know your name!”_  The blond boy just swings back and forth in his chair ever so slightly, sheepish smile on his face.

Finally the silence is broken by the loud boy. “Anyway, yeah, I better be off. Stuff to do an’ all that!” He quickly shuts down the computer and stuffs his belongings into the backpack by his feet, before getting up and heading past Harry towards the door. “Sorry again, mate, good luck with your work!” he shouts across the room, one final glance back at Harry. Harry smiles back and raises his hand in a sort of saluting gesture and _God, what did he do that for?_ The other boy laughs one last time and then he’s gone. 

\----------

For the next three weeks all Harry can think about is the blond haired boy from the library with the gorgeous blue eyes. It’s beginning to become a bit of a problem, really. He doesn't even know the boy’s name for Christ’s sake, and yet he still finds himself imagining what the boy’s lips taste like, and what his voice sounds like just after he’s woken up, and what song their first dance will be to at their wedding. He knows nothing will come of it but he still can’t help the twinge of hope he feels every time he spots a boy with blond hair in the corner of his eye.

\----------

It’s Monday morning and Harry’s has a 9am lecture. He sits in the back row of the room next to his friend Zayn, both having decided that it’s way too early to be learning about statistics.Harry’s thoughts are once again occupied by a certain young blond, wondering if one of his friends might know who the mystery boy is. _Louis knows a lot of people; maybe he’ll be able to help Harry find him…_

Harry’s thoughts are cut short, however, by the sound of the professor’s voice saying, “Are you with us, Mr Styles?”

“Sorry, yes, I'm listening. Could you repeat the question though, please?” Harry blushes, feeling the eyes of every student in the room on his face.

“Well if you were paying attention like you say you were then I wouldn't have to,” she challenges, and Harry just wants to sink down off his chair and disappear.

“Right –well – um, the answer is…” He glances down to the piece of paper Zayn subtly slides in front of him which he hopes bears the right answer. However Zayn’s not subtle enough.

“Nice try there, Zayn, but I wanted to see what Harry knows – not you,” she raises her eyebrows at the pair, “I’ll let it slide this time, Harry, but pay attention because next time I ask I won’t be so forgiving,” she says before turning back to the whiteboard.

“Sorry, bro,” Zayn leans over and whispers.

Harry just shrugs his shoulders in a way that he hopes comes across as “ _it’s not your fault”._

Harry spends the remainder of the lecture trying hard to concentrate on what his professor is saying, but he’s already missed the beginning of the lecture so nothing she says makes any sense to him. Time passes by impossibly slow to the point where Harry wonders if it’s possible that they could actually be moving back in time, not forwards. Eventually though the professor concludes her lecture and Harry makes a sharp run for the exit, determined not to embarrass himself any further.

His professor has other ideas, however, and calls him back before he has the chance to leave, “Can I just have a quick word with you for a minute, Harry? It won’t take long, I promise.” She’s smiling but Harry can’t help the sinking feeling in his stomach. He hates disappointing people.

Harry smiles back weakly and says, “Sure, no problem.”

Zayn is the last person to leave the room. He pats Harry on the shoulder as he passes and mutters, “I’ll catch you later man, yeah?”

But then he’s gone and it’s just Harry and his professor and an awkward silence left.

“So Harry, I can’t help but notice you've been a bit preoccupied these past few weeks,” his professor says, “Is everything ok? Is there anything you want to talk about?”

“No everything’s fine, I promise. Just been a bit distracted is all, but I’ll try and focus more from now on. Sorry,” Harry says in the hopes it will appease her and he can just _leave already_. But he has no such luck.

“I'm sure you will Harry, but that’s not all I have to talk about,” she smiles sympathetically at him, “As a consequence of your day-dreaming your assignments from the past few weeks have lowered in quality substantially and I'm sorry to say you’re currently failing the module.”

Harry feels his stomach drop.

“But don’t worry,” she continues, “Because you’re normally one of my top students I'm going to give you a chance to re-do two of them to try and raise your grade.”

“Thank you so, so much! Really I'm so grateful, thanks,” Harry says after letting out the breath he was holding.

“No problem, Harry, just don’t mess this up ok? I'm not usually this lenient, so I’d recommend you get a tutor to help you catch up on what you've missed recently if you really want to impress me,” his professor says.

“Yes of course, anything, thank you,” Harry answers.

His professor tears a page out of her notebook and passes it to Harry. “This is the email address for one of my top students from last semester. I already talked to him, he said he’d be happy to help you so just email him to arrange it all – unless you have someone else in mind?”

He racks his brain but can’t think of an alternative. Instead he looks down at the piece of paper in his hand that simply reads _[n.horan@student.uom.ac.uk](mailto:n.horan@student.uom.ac.uk) _ and says, “I'm sure this guy will be fine.”

“Well that’s everything, Harry; I’ll let you go now. You have two weeks to study and then you will complete them both under exam conditions,” his professor dismisses him with a final smile.

As soon as he’s out the door Harry lets out a groan. _All of this trouble because of one boy he barely spoke to._

\----------

It takes Harry a couple of days to work up the courage to send the email. There’s something daunting about asking a stranger for help. He sits at the kitchen table in the small house he shares with two of his friends, eyebrows furrowed, staring at the screen of his laptop.

Harry’s silence is interrupted by the slamming of the front door announcing the return of one of his housemates.

“Bloody hell mate are you still writing that thing?! What number version is this?” Louis asks as he breezes into the kitchen and heads straight for the kettle.

“S’only number five,” Harry mumbles back.

“Five?! Honestly Harold just man up and send the damn thing! I'm pretty sure he’s not gonna sit and pick apart your grammar and spelling and shit,” Louis says.

“I just wanna make a good impression, that’s all,” Harry tells him, still not looking up from the screen. He’s already failing the module; he doesn't want this n.horan person thinking he’s an even bigger failure who can’t write an email properly.

“Mate, you’re not gonna make an impression at all if you don’t send it!” Louis counters and okay, _maybe he has a point._

“You know what, you’re right. I’ll send it in a minute,” Harry says, finally looking over to where Louis is pouring himself a cup of tea.

“I'm always right, Harry dear,” Louis smirks before patting Harry on the head and leaving the room, cup of tea in hand. “And if you’re still writing that bloody email the next time I come into this kitchen I swear I’ll shave your head in your sleep!” he yells from the next room.

Harry re-reads his email one last time before hitting send. He doesn't _think_ Louis would follow up on his threat, but he’d rather not risk it. He’s not sure he has the right head shape pull off the bald look.

He settles on a simple, albeit slightly formal email.

**_To:[n.horan@student.uom.ac.uk](mailto:n.horan@student.uom.ac.uk)_ **

**_From:[h.e.styles@student.uom.ac.uk](mailto:h.e.styles@student.uom.ac.uk)_ **

**_Subject: Tutoring_ **

_Hello,_

_I'm_ _currently looking for someone to tutor me in the Statistics module and my professor gave me your email. She said she’d already spoken to you about it so I hope you were expecting this email. I was wondering if we would be able to arrange a meeting to discuss it all? Just let me know when you’re available and I will get back to you as soon as possible._

_Thank you,_

_Harry Styles_

The reply comes a lot faster than expected. Just ten minutes later Harry’s laptop dings, alerting him to the new email.

**_To:[h.e.styles@student.uom.ac.uk](mailto:h.e.styles@student.uom.ac.uk)_ **

**_From:[n.horan@student.uom.ac.uk](mailto:n.horan@student.uom.ac.uk)_ **

**_Subject: Re: Tutoring_ **

_Hi harry_

_Yeh she spoke to me. Can totally help you thats fine. I’m free 2moro 2-5 and all day fri just name your time and place_

_Niall_

Harry checks his timetable and writes a reply suggesting they meet at 1pm on Friday in one of the special meeting rooms in the library. Niall quickly replies in agreement, so Harry shuts off his laptop and decides he best have another look at the work they’ll be going over when they meet up.

\----------

It’s 1:19pm on Friday and Harry’s sat alone, waiting for this Niall to show up to the library. Harry scowls at the table in front of him and picks at the hole in one of the knees of his jeans. _Of course he’s late how typical, it’s not like his whole future depends on passing this module_ and okay, maybe he’s overreacting a little.

Harry wonders how much longer he should sit here waiting for but then the door bursts open and it’s _him._ The blond haired boy with the beautiful eyes.

“Oh man I'm so sorry I'm late! I slept in and – hey I know you! You’re the one who told me off for being too loud aren't you?” the boy says. He has this huge, beaming grin on his face which somehow reminds Harry of sunshine. Once again Harry can’t help but just stare, lips ever so slightly parted.

“Er, you are Harry, right?” he falters, “I'm Niall, the guy who offered to help you…”

Harry’s brain snaps back into action and he can’t help but laugh in disbelief. _How fitting that the guy who got him into this mess will be the one to get him out of it._

“Yeah that’s me, I'm Harry. Nice to properly meet you, Niall.” Harry smiles and holds out his hand, glad that he’s found his manners again.

Niall looks down at Harry’s hand in amusement and gives it a firm shake. “So shall we do this then?” he questions and moves to sit in the chair opposite Harry.

The next three hours or so are spent figuring out schedules and discussing what Harry’s been having difficulty with until they both eventually grow bored of statistics and start just talking about general things instead. Harry learns that Niall laughs at just about everything – including his rubbish jokes – and this time instead of making him feel angry, Niall’s laugh makes him feel all warm and tingly inside.

Niall’s in the middle of telling a story about how this one guy once brought his pet budgie to one of his lectures when Harry’s phone buzzes in his pocket. He takes it out to find a text from Louis reminding him it’s his turn to cook Friday night dinner today, and it’s only then does Harry check the time, realising it’s almost quarter past five.

“I'm really sorry, I have to go,” Harry says reluctantly. He doesn't want to leave yet, feels like he could keep talking to Niall all night. “But we’ll meet again on Monday yeah?”

“I’ll be here,” Niall nods, “Hopefully not late this time!” he adds with a cheeky grin.

Harry smiles back and busies himself with tidying up his things to hide the faint blush on his cheeks. When all his papers are finally in order he neatly tucks them into his bag and makes his way over to the door.

“Harry, wait!”

Harry stops in the doorway and turns back to face Niall.

“Could I get your number?” Niall asks, “Y’know, just in case I am actually late on Monday or something…” And if Harry’s not mistaken, he thinks he can see a hopeful look in Niall’s eyes.

“Right yeah, good idea.” Harry strides back over and the pair swap details. “Have a good weekend, Niall.” He hands Niall back his phone, puts his own back into his pocket and then leaves the room feeling a little bit giddy.

\----------

Over the next two weeks Harry and Niall meet up several times in the library and with each meeting Harry understands more and more about statistics. Niall’s a great teacher. He also learns more and more about Niall himself, like how he’s obsessed with football and that fact that he can play guitar.

They meet one last time on the day before Harry has to complete his assignments, and when it’s time to leave Harry exits the library with a heavy heart. He’s had fun hanging out with Niall these past few weeks and he really doesn't want it to be the last time they see each other. But Niall hadn't really shown any interest in hanging out together outside of the tutoring sessions. Well, apart from that time he asked for Harry’s number – _but that was purely for schedule reasons, right?_

_\----------_

The next morning Harry skips breakfast and heads straight to university. He’s far too nervous to eat and he just wants to get these assignments out of the way. He completes both test papers in the allocated time and hands them over to his professor.

“I’ll mark these in my lunch break and put the results online,” she tells him, “Don’t look so worried, Harry, I'm sure you've done great this time round.”

Harry hopes so. He really doesn't want to let Niall down, even if they probably won’t actually see each other ever again.

Harry decides to walk home in order to pass time until lunch. He deliberately slows his pace and when he checks his watch he’s delighted to see he’s managed to waste forty-five minutes, meaning that with a bit of luck his professor will have already posted his results. As soon as he’s through the door, Harry retrieves his laptop and logs on to the university website. He closes his eyes and refreshes the webpage. 78% and 86%. Thank God. He lets out a huge sigh of relief and then grins to himself. Without thinking twice, Harry slides his phone out of his pocket and calls Niall. He needs to share the news with someone.

“Harry, mate, how’s it going?” Niall answers and it’s only then does Harry realise just what he’s done. “Harry? You there?”

“Hi, yeah. I just thought I’d tell you that I got my results back for my assignments,” Harry says.

“And…?” Niall prompts, “How’d they go?”

“Oh right yeah! I passed both of them!”

“Nice one, mate, knew you’d smash it!” Niall says and Harry can practically feel his smile through the phone. “We should totally go out and celebrate sometime.”

Harry’s eyes light up at the idea of going out somewhere with Niall. _Is he asking me on a date?_

“Um, I'm free tonight…” Harry says and he mentally starts kicking himself. _Wow, way to sound stupidly eager, Styles._

Thankfully Niall sounds just as eager in his response. “Great, wanna go for a pint then?”

The two arrange to meet at 8pm in the pub on the corner of the street where Harry lives and Harry spends the rest of the afternoon with a smile on his face and butterflies in his stomach.

At 7:45pm Harry starts making his way to the pub. After hours of deliberation he’d finally settled on wearing his black skinny jeans and boots along with a black, slightly sheer shirt, which was actually the first outfit he’d tried on. This earned him an eye-roll from Zayn who popped his head round Harry’s door to wish him luck before going to his girlfriend’s house for the night.

As he enters through the pub door Harry spots Niall already at the bar looking like he’s just about to pay for the two pints that stand in front of him.

Harry rushes over to stand beside Niall and says, “Don’t bother Niall, it’s on me. To say thanks, you know.” He fishes his wallet out of his pocket and hands a ten pound note to the barman. As Harry waits for his change Niall grabs both pints and starts towards one of the empty booths in the far corner. Harry takes this opportunity to appreciate Niall’s outfit. And if he spent a fraction too long staring at the boy’s legs, well, who could blame him? The pair of blue jeans that Niall’s wearing fit him so perfectly that Harry thinks it should be considered a crime.

Harry slides into the booth opposite Niall and their legs knock together under the table. The two boys sit in a comfortable silence, stealing flirty glances at one another. After downing half his pint, Niall launches into a story about how his flatmate got locked out of his room naked this morning. Harry can’t help staring at Niall’s lips as they move, his tongue darting out his mouth every now and again to wet them. He knows he’s being obvious but it’s taking all of his willpower not to just lean across the table and kiss Niall.

“And then when he finally gets the door –”

“Do you wanna go back to my place?” Harry blurts out, surprising himself because _when did he become so forward?_

Niall gulps back the remainder of his drink and then stands up. “Lead the way.”

They don’t leave much space between their bodies as they walk alongside each other down the road towards Harry’s house. Every so often the backs of their hands brush together and Harry wonders if he should just quash the awkwardness and grab hold of Niall’s hand. But then he becomes aware how sweaty his palms are and decides maybe that’s not such a good idea.

Eventually they reach Harry’s front door and Harry can’t seem to get the key in the lock whilst Niall is stood so close behind him, watching his every move.

After several attempts, the lock finally slides open and Harry gestures for Niall to go in first. He shuts the door behind himself and turns back to Niall, saying, “Sorry about that I –”

He’s cut off mid-sentence by the press of Niall’s lips against his own. Niall’s lips are a lot softer than he expected, but the kiss feels so much better than anything he’d imagined over the past weeks. Niall is the one who ends the kiss. He leans back and Harry can see he has a shy smile on his face, something he’s not used to seeing on Niall. The fact that he’s the one who put that smile there makes his insides squirm with delight.

In the dim light of the hallway, the pair lock eyes. They both know they want more but neither dare make the first move. Eventually the tension becomes too much and they both seem to move in unison, mouths crashing back together in a much more heated kiss. Harry places a hand on either side of Niall’s face and crowds him towards the wall. When his back slams into the wall Niall lets out a breathy moan and damn, _if that’s not the most beautiful sound Harry has ever heard._

Harry doesn't know how long they continue kissing for. It could have been years or it could have been minutes. All Harry does know is that he can feel himself well on the way to getting hard, and from the sharp intake of breath Niall takes when he presses their crotches together, he assumes Niall’s there too.

Harry pulls back with a wet smacking sound. “We should…” he gestures to the stairs behind him.

“Yeah,” Niall whispers, smiling once more.

Harry grabs Niall’s hand and tugs him up the stairs. As soon as they enter Harry’s bedroom their lips reattach. Harry walks Niall backwards towards the bed, the back of Niall’s knees buckling when they come into contact with the mattress. Harry kneels between Niall’s legs where he’s perched on the edge of the bed and starts unbuttoning his jeans, and in a low voice says, “You know, I still think I owe you for all the help you gave me.” He looks up at Niall’s face and Harry wants to save this picture in his memory forever. Niall’s eyes are glazed over, a deep red blush high on his cheeks, and his mouth is slightly open, letting out these heavy breaths which tell Harry he’s definitely doing something right.

Harry turns his attention back to removing Niall’s jeans and when he reaches for his underwear, Harry looks back up to meet Niall’s eyes. “This okay?” he questions.

“Yeah just…” Niall pants, and if he tells him to stop Harry might just _die._ “Just please don’t ask me to keep it down this time, yeah?”

\----------

In the morning Harry is woken up by the mattress shifting next to him. It takes him a second to remember what happened the night before, but then he opens his eyes with a smile on his face and staring right back at him are those beautiful blue eyes. Niall grins and then tangles his fingers with Harry’s where they lay on the mattress between them.

The pair lay there, not saying a word until Harry breaks the silence.

“Statistically speaking, what would be the chance of you saying yes to being my boyfriend?” he asks, voice still thick with sleep.

“You’re the statistics genius now, shouldn't you know that answer to that already?” Niall replies cheekily.

“Niall…” Harry whines, pout already beginning to form on his lips.

“I’d say there’s a one-hundred percent chance I’d say yes if you stop with the awful puns,” Niall teases with a playful glint in his eyes.

Satisfied with the response, Harry closes his eyes and snuggles back under the covers, unable to keep the huge grin off his face.  _Perhaps day-dreaming in class wasn't such a bad thing after all._

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the time I was trying to write an essay and my flatmate was singing in her room next door and driving me up the wall.
> 
> Sorry there's no smut! This is my first ever fic so I didn't wanna completely ruin it with badly written sex haha.  
> (Also, sorry there's no Liam - I didn't leave him out on purpose I promise!)
> 
> I'm on tumblr! Come say hello at littlervoice.tumblr.com


End file.
